ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH

ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH error shows in your web browser when the browser cannot establish secure connection with the web server. SSL certificates are common theses days as they provide secure and encrypted connection between a website and a web browser. SSL certificates are used in situations when you need to encrypt sensitive data like credit card numbers and personal information so you can accept payments securely, data transfers, web form logins etc. But today the SSL certificates are becoming standard protocol for any website, and Google is pushing all webmasters to implement SSL certificates on their websites. Today we will show you how to fix ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH error.

All popular web browser like Chrome, Firefox, IE or Safari support SSL certificates. When there is a problem with the SSL certificate, the web browser will trigger an error message which will help you better understand the problem. One of the error messages that you can see in your web browser is ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH. This will block the access to the website so it is really important to investigate what is causing this error.

Here’s a screenshot of what the browser will display.

“A secure connection cannot be established because this site uses an unsupported protocol.
Error code: ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH”.

Reasons that triggers ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH error

This problem usually occurs when you are using old web browser or operating system, but sometimes there could be other reasons like problem with the SSL certificate. There are few simple steps which can help you determine what causes the problem.

SSL certificate error

Browser Cache and Cookies are not cleared

TLS 1.3 support not enabled

QUIC protocol not disabled

Website blocked by Anti-Virus or Firewall

Other causes

Below are the possible solutions for fix ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH error.

1. Check the SSL certificate

Of course, one of the first steps in debugging this problem is to check the SSL certificate and make sure everything is fine. To check if everything is OK with the SSL certificate you can use some free online SSL checker tool. There are many free online services which allows you to perform a deep analysis of the SSL certificate installed for that specific website. We can recommend you to use the one provided by Qualys SSL Labs as it is very comprehensive.

If you are using our Linux VPS hosting and you are experiencing problems with the SSL certificate installed on your server, you can contact our Linux experts and they will help you to solve the problem immediately. They are available 24/7.

2. Clear your web browser history/cache

Another solution for the ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH error is to clear your web browser stored data like history/cache. Depending on what web browser you are using, this step may differ. If you are not sure how to clear the stored data for your browser, you can search on Google about what actions you need to take to accomplish this. Some web browsers allows you to use keyboard shortcuts so if you press CTRL + SHIFT + DELETE you will access the clear browsing data page directly.

Once you clear the stored data in your web browser you can try to access the website and see if that fixed the problem.

3. Enable TLS 1.3 support in the web browser

Another common solution for the ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH error is to enable TLS 1.3 support in your web browser. Google Chrome allows you to set the minimum SSL/TLS version supported. Type chrome://flags in the search bar and press Enter. Then search for TLS 1.3. This option may already been enabled in your web browser. If this option is disabled, you can enable it and close the tab. In order for the changes to take effect, you need to restart your web browser.

4. Disable QUIC protocol

If the QUIC protocol is enabled in your web browser, you can also try disabling it. Open Google Chrome, type chrome://flags in the search bar and press Enter to access the settings page. Search for Experimental QUIC protocol and if this option is enabled, disable it. Once you make the changes close the tab and restart the web browser for the changes to take effect. Then, try again to access the website and see if that fixed the problem.

5. Disable the anti-virus software

The anti-virus software installed on your local machine could also block the access to the website. You can temporary disable the anti-virus software and try to access the website again. If that doesn’t fix the problem, you can check your firewall too and make sure the website is not added in the firewall’s blacklist.

6. Other solutions

If none of the solutions suggested above resolved your issue, you can try reinstalling the web browser and/or the extensions enabled in your web browser. Also, if you are are using older operating system like Windows XP, you may consider upgrading the operating system. Newer technologies such as TLS 1.3 and the latest cipher suites are not supported on older systems.

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